Chapter 87

The voice in Chen Fan's ear told him that a new skill had arrived, and he should organize his words carefully to avoid being taken away by the police.

[Ding, congratulations to the host for acquiring a new skill: "Understand the Applause."]

[Understand the Applause: A miraculous skill from the world of pyramid schemes. Your words carry great persuasiveness and an irresistible magic; even if you tell someone they are a pig, they will start to wonder if they truly are one.]

[Extension of Understand the Applause: Sowing discord. As long as you wish, even the most loving couple will start thinking about divorce.]

I am truly defeated, you old fox; why do you keep giving Laozi things like this?

Can't you give me something normal?

For example, something that brings good to the world; why must you force such a serious skill on me? How is one supposed to handle this?

Never mind, time to rest and sleep.

Another morning. This time, it wasn't overcast, which was good news. If the weather was clear, things here wouldn't be so busy.

Chen Fan stretched, tidied up, and brought the cameraman to the canteen, intending to eat breakfast.

A voice caught Chen Fan's attention.

The person opening the door was a police officer. The officer seemed to have arrived quite early, looking around and waiting.

Waiting for Old Liu.

"Is something the matter?"

The officer saw Chen Fan and ran over in a flash, saying, "There is a matter that requires your help to look into; it involves the subsequent sentencing."

Chen Fan said, "Let me take a look."

"Uh, I remember you're a big star. Are you a forensic doctor now?"

"I was for a while. Any official reports written have legal effect, so you can rest assured. Tell me, what exactly is the matter?"

The officer handed the contents of the file bag to Chen Fan.

Chen Fan looked through the photos one by one.

The photos showed a deceased person who had collapsed in an alley, and the person arrested was the man's wife.

The report stated that the wife had shot and killed the man.

However, the gunshot wound was in the leg, not the head or the torso.

In the morning, the variety show already welcomed over ten million online viewers.

"Don't look at me, eat your food, have some breakfast."

"Uh, don't you need my exclusive case analysis?"

"No, I don't. What do you mean by telling me that? Are you trying to pull strings, or do you know this woman?"

The officer was young and blushed a little under Chen Fan's persistent questioning.

At this moment, Old Liu walked in and said, "Why not take care of your own kin? There's nothing to talk about; it's just a small matter."

"No, no, although I know this woman, it hasn't reached that point; we are just friends."

Chen Fan clicked his tongue and laughed from the side.

The officer turned his head, avoiding Chen Fan's gaze.

Old Liu said, "Let Chen Fan analyze it. I know about this case; your director called me, saying you came over with the files and asked me to take a look to see how this case should be defined."

"Ah, the director actually didn't want me to come."

"It's fine, it's fine. Having ideas is a good thing."

Chen Fan looked at the data inside and said, "The time was last night, and the cause of death was excessive blood loss, right?"

"Yes."

That changes things.

Chen Fan said, "This person was a prop master at the film base. How would a prop master possess a firearm?"

"This person made it himself."

Chen Fan continued to press, "That doesn't make sense, does it? A prop master making his own gun—isn't that illegal? Does the fact that he's dead mean the illegal act no longer exists?"

Old Liu said quite firmly, "Don't lead this young man on; talk about the forensic side directly."

Chen Fan scoffed. He had intended to use his new skill, but unexpectedly, Old Liu was able to block it.

Chen Fan continued, "There are actually two causes of death: first, death from excessive blood loss due to the gunshot."

"Isn't that it? Is there a second one?"

Chen Fan continued, "The alcohol content in the blood has reached a lethal level, so it's unclear whether he died from drinking or from being shot."

"Does that mean an autopsy is required?"

Chen Fan and Old Liu exchanged glances, and Chen Fan continued, "Currently, I can provide two forensic conclusions: death by alcoholism, or death by shooting. However, I lean toward death by alcoholism; after all, even without the gunshot, he would have died from that amount of alcohol."

At this point, the officer asked, "Then how should you write the report?"

"Naturally, death by excessive blood loss; that is the direct cause of death."

Damn, so you're just talking nonsense here.

The officer sighed helplessly and said, "Sigh, everyone says that. Fine, I understand. Sorry to bother everyone, I'll head back first."

"Tell us, what exactly is the situation?"

The officer said, "Nothing much. This woman called the police many times, and over time, we got to know each other. I was the first to handle her calls; she was being domestically abused. They are currently in the divorce cooling-off period. I've looked for this guy and talked to him about these things, but it was useless."

"This man is just a scoundrel. I had him write a guarantee, and I even arrested him for subsequent fights. He said he would behave, but then he went to harass the woman again. Every time she called the police, I had to deal with it."

"I'm not annoyed; I'm just annoyed with this man. They're already divorced and in the cooling-off period, so why can't he just let her go?"

Chen Fan tapped the table and said, "Remember, young man, the fundamental reason a man doesn't want a divorce is never love; it's always because he can't find a replacement."

"You're talking nonsense; love exists in this world."

"Does it?"

"It exists... I think."

Hahahahaha.

Chen Fan laughed wantonly.

This is the charm of this skill; even the most steadfast person cannot resist Chen Fan's flowery, deceptive talk.

Damn, this skill is truly terrifying; this thing can easily get people killed.

Chen Fan knew very well that the charm of language can sometimes make a person die without knowing why. He could even say that if Chen Fan were willing to spend the time, countless people would give him money.

"Is there really no way to handle this kind of thing?"

"Does it mean even the police are helpless?"

"I really don't get it. Where did things go wrong? Men these days are really disappointing."

"They're already divorced, yet he still won't let her go."

The viewers in the livestream were the most speechless. They had intended to watch something fun early in the morning, only to encounter something like this.

It was disheartening, and there was nothing to be done.

Just then, a bald head appeared in the crowd.

Li Tian sat at the dining table with a smile.

Chen Fan said speechlessly, "I feel like nothing good ever happens when you show up."

"No, I'm here to help this young man."

Help the young man?

Old Liu coughed and said, "Don't talk nonsense about certain things."

Li Tian said, "The case is actually very simple. I've looked at the continuous police calls and the content of the reports. Every dispatch record is fine, but the biggest problem is that this woman kept calling the police."

Chen Fan didn't speak.

Li Tian continued, "First, this person was hit in the head, meaning the head suffered an impact. You forensic doctors aren't used to looking at testimonies; you only look at the cause of death, time of death, source of the lethal blow, etc. That's what you do; it's data, it's cold."

"But I am very emotional. I reconstructed a story."

"The woman called the police because she was beaten by her ex-husband, beaten very badly. This is the latest police record. In the call, the woman was crying uncontrollably, and there was another sentence: 'You damn bitch, you still dare to call the police? I'll kill you. Just you wait for me.'"

Chen Fan listened curiously.

Li Tian continued, "When a person is threatened, the best way is to choose a weapon to protect oneself. And this person was a prop master; usually, prop masters know how to make handguns, but they are loaded with blanks that wouldn't cause pain. However, the gun this woman got wasn't loaded with blanks."

"You mean, the woman was fighting back?"

Li Tian said, "It's not fighting back; fighting back is when you are currently suffering persecution. Whether it was fighting back requires subsequent calculation; that's for lawyers to do. I'm just providing a line of thought. The simplest concept: the woman didn't run, right? She stayed right there waiting for you to arrive?"

The officer said, "Yes, yes, yes."

"Then that's it. It shows the woman didn't know she would kill someone. If she didn't know she would kill someone and still fired, there is only one explanation: self-defense. That's why the woman shot at the leg, not the body or the head."

The officer understood instantly and said, "Yes, I found traces of a gun in the man's pocket and gunpowder residue on his hands."

"See, the answer is clear. Whether this woman was threatened, or whether she wasn't threatened and used this as an excuse to kill the man—there are two answers. How it is judged is up to the judge."

The officer stood up and said, "Thank you both."

Old Liu said, "I can write a statement here: the woman had suffered domestic abuse before her death, and she shot at the leg, not with the intent to kill."

Chen Fan was stunned and said, "Can this be written?"

"This is the actual situation; why can't it be written? I haven't violated any rules. If this woman were truly a meticulous murderer, she should have been injured herself at this point."

The officer nodded, waiting for Old Liu to write the report.

With the document in hand, the officer prepared to leave, but suddenly thought of something, turned back, and said, "The deceased's mother came to our police station voluntarily to plead for this woman, saying it was all her son's fault and had nothing to do with her... Do you think this counts for anything?"

Li Tian and Chen Fan fell silent at the same time.

Old Liu also fell silent.

"Uh, well, I suppose it shouldn't count."

Chen Fan said, "Young man, let me ask you something."

"Ah, go ahead."

"How did you manage to refrain from killing this idiot of a deceased person?"

The young man was amused by Chen Fan's words and said, "I just... sigh, I couldn't stand it either, but I put on this uniform. I couldn't find a way. I gave her an alarm, gave her my contact information, etc. I was also the first to arrive at the scene."

The young man explained his helplessness clearly, but he had no way to solve it.

The people in the livestream also felt relieved. In fact, Li Tian's words were pointing the young man toward the breakthrough: the case should be discussed from the perspective of domestic abuse.

At this time, some students had already woken up and come to the dining table. Xiang Qinqin squinted, yawned, and took a bite of a steamed bun, almost falling asleep.

Several stars also arrived one after another. Zhang Xinyu said, "I've been watching the livestream; I didn't expect it could be handled this way."